An Israeli air strike killed five Palestinian fighters early Saturday in the southern Gaza Strip, Palestinian witnesses and officials said. Moaiya Hassanain, of the Gaza Health Ministry, said eight others were wounded in the strike, including one in critical condition. Hamas officials said the dead belonged to their military wing, while many of the injured belonged to the Popular Resistance Committees, a smaller militant group allied to Hamas. Hamas officials said the men were on a night patrol east of Khan Younis, a town in the southern Gaza Strip. The army said it carried out the strike after identifying armed men near its border with Gaza, according to a report of the Associated Press.
